Refrigerator

ABSTRACT

Provided herein is a refrigerator with an improved coupling structure of a heat dissipation duct for dissipating heat generated in a display unit and having and applying the improved heat dissipation duct to a door having a thin thickness such that a problem in which a curve is generated at an exterior of a door when an inside of the door is filled with a heat insulating material is prevented. The refrigerator includes a main body, and a door, wherein the door includes a door cap coupled to at least one of an upper portion and a lower portion of the door, a display unit provided at a front surface of the door, a heat dissipation cover arranged behind the display unit, and a heat dissipation duct slidably inserted into the door through the at least one of the upper portion and the lower portion of the door.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation Application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/955,440, filed on Apr. 17, 2018, which is aContinuation Application, filed under 35 U.S.C. § 111(a) ofInternational Patent Application No. PCT/KR2017/005400 filed May 24,2017, it being further noted that foreign priority benefit is based uponKorean Patent Application No. 10-2016-0096483 filed on Jul. 28, 2016.The contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a refrigerator with an improvedcoupling structure of a heat dissipation duct for dissipating heatgenerated in a display unit.

BACKGROUND ART

Generally, a refrigerator is an apparatus for keeping food fresh at lowtemperature by supplying low-temperature cold air to a storagecompartment in which the food is stored, and includes a freezingcompartment maintained at a freezing temperature or lower and arefrigerating compartment maintained at a temperature slightly above thefreezing temperature.

Types of refrigerators may be classified depending on forms of a storagecompartment and a door, and may be classified as a top mounted freezer(TMF) type refrigerator in which a storage compartment is verticallydivided by a horizontal partition, a freezing compartment is formed atan upper side, and a refrigerating compartment is formed at a lowerside, and a bottom mounted freezer (BMF) type refrigerator in which arefrigerating compartment is formed at an upper side and a freezingcompartment is formed at a lower side.

Also, there is a side-by-side (SBS) refrigerator in which a storagecompartment is horizontally divided by a vertical partition, a freezingcompartment is formed at one side, and a refrigerating compartment isformed at the other side, and there is a French door refrigerator (FDR)type refrigerator in which a storage compartment is vertically dividedby a horizontal partition, a refrigerating compartment is formed at anupper side, a freezing compartment is formed at a lower side, and therefrigerating compartment at the upper side is opened or closed by apair of doors.

A display unit configured to display operation information of arefrigerator or receive an operation command for the refrigerator isprovided at a door of the refrigerator in some cases.

Heat is generated in the display unit during operation, and because theheat may deteriorate operational performance of the display unit andpenetrate into a storage compartment to increase a temperature insidethe storage compartment, it is preferable that the heat be dissipated tothe outside.

Although a method in which heat generated in a display unit is conductedto a door of a refrigerator by using a heat dissipation plate has beenrecently proposed to solve this, heat dissipation efficiency is notsatisfactory, and the heat may be transmitted to a user when the usercomes into contact with the door.

Also, a method in which heat is released using a blower has beenproposed, but there are problems in that noise is generated and astructure of a refrigerator including the blower is complex, and amethod in which a heat dissipation duct for dissipating heat generatedin a display unit is engaged with an inside of a refrigerator door hasbeen proposed, but there is a problem in that assembling the heatdissipation duct is difficult.

One side of the heat dissipation duct is assembled to the inside of therefrigerator door by a hook and the like, and then the other side isrotated and assembled to the refrigerator door by a hook and the like,and the heat dissipation duct is engaged with the refrigerator door byan engaging member such as a screw when the heat dissipation duct isassembled to the refrigerator door by the hook and the like.

Because the heat dissipation duct is assembled by the hook and the likeand then engaged with the refrigerator door by the engaging member sucha screw, there are problems in that assembling the heat dissipation ductis difficult, and a separate sealing task for preventing penetration ofa heat insulating material, with which the inside of the refrigeratordoor is filled, into the heat dissipation duct is required even afterthe heat dissipation duct is assembled.

DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

It is an aspect of the present disclosure to provide a refrigerator withan improved coupling structure of a heat dissipation duct fordissipating heat generated in a display unit and having and applying theimproved heat dissipation duct to a door having a thin thickness suchthat a problem in which a curve is generated at an exterior of a doorwhen an inside of the door is filled with a heat insulating material isprevented.

Technical Solution

One aspect of the present disclosure provides a refrigerator including amain body having a storage compartment, and a door configured to open orclose the storage compartment, wherein the door includes a door capcoupled to at least one of an upper portion and a lower portion of thedoor, a display unit provided at a front surface of the door, a heatdissipation cover arranged behind the display unit to form a heatdissipation flow path through which heat generated in the display unitis dissipated, and a heat dissipation duct slidably inserted into thedoor through the at least one of the upper portion and the lower portionof the door, to be seated between a coupling portion of the heatdissipation cover and an insertion portion of the door cap, wherein thecoupling portion and the insertion portion extend lengthwise along theheat dissipation duct to accommodate the heat dissipation duct.

The heat dissipation duct may include a suction duct inserted into thelower portion of the door and coupled to a lower portion of the heatdissipation cover and a discharge duct inserted into the upper portionof the door and coupled to an upper portion of the heat dissipationcover.

Air inside the heat dissipation may flow path flows due to naturalconvection, and air outside the door may be suctioned through thesuction duct, passes through the heat dissipation flow path, and bedischarged to an outside of the door through the discharge duct.

Each of the suction duct and the discharge duct may include a rearsurface portion in a planar shape and a round portion protruding from afront surface of the rear surface portion in a direction toward thefront surface of the door.

Each of the suction duct and the discharge duct further may include areinforcing rib provided between the rear surface portion and the roundportion.

The coupling portion may include a first coupling portion formed at thelower portion of the heat dissipation cover and coupled to the suctionduct and a second coupling portion formed at the upper portion of theheat dissipation cover and coupled to the discharge duct.

The first coupling portion and the second coupling portion may be formedto extend from the heat dissipation cover to respectively accommodateone ends of the suction duct and the discharge duct that arerespectively inserted into the first coupling portion and the secondcoupling portion by being slid therein.

Each of the first coupling portion and the second coupling portion mayinclude an insertion groove into which the one end of the suction ductor the discharge duct is inserted, a first supporter configured tosupport an outer portion of the suction duct or the discharge ductinserted into the insertion groove, and a second supporter configured tosupport an inner portion of the suction duct or the discharge ductinserted into the insertion groove.

The second supporter may include a coupling groove to which thereinforcing rib is fitted and coupled.

The door cap may include a lower door cap and an upper door cap coupledto the lower portion and the upper portion of the door, respectively,and the insertion portion may include a first inserting portion intowhich the suction duct is inserted, and the upper door cap includes asecond inserting portion into which the discharge duct is inserted.

The first inserting portion may include a first insertion hole intowhich the suction duct is inserted and a first guide configured to guidethe suction duct inserted into the first insertion hole to slidetherethrough and formed to extend from the lower door cap to accommodatethe other end of the suction duct.

The second inserting portion may include a second insertion hole intowhich the discharge duct is inserted and a second guide configured toguide the discharge duct inserted into the second insertion hole toslide therethrough and formed to extend from the upper door cap toaccommodate the other end of the discharge duct.

The lower door cap may include a recessed portion having anupwardly-recessed shape and in which the first inserting portion isprovided, and a lower cover formed of a transparent material, having alight emitting diode (LED) mounted therein, configured to cover thefirst inserting portion, and including a suction hole that allows thesuction duct to communicate with the outside of the door is coupled tothe recessed portion.

An upper cover configured to cover the second inserting portion may becoupled to the upper door cap, and the upper cover may include adischarge hole that allows the discharge duct to communicate with theoutside of the door.

Advantageous Effects

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, by facilitatingcoupling of a heat dissipation duct and preventing generation of a curveat an exterior of a door due to the heat dissipation duct when an insideof the door is filled with a heat insulating material, the heatdissipation duct can be applied to a door having a thin thickness.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which a door of therefrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure isopen.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an upper door of therefrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a view illustrating a state in which an upper cover and adischarge duct are disassembled according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating a state in which the discharge ductillustrated in

FIG. 4 is coupled to a heat dissipation cover.

FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a state in which the upper coverillustrated in FIG. 5 is coupled to an upper door cap.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a portion in which a heatdissipation duct is coupled to a coupling portion according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 is a view illustrating a state in which a lower cover and asuction duct are disassembled according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 9 is a view illustrating a state in which the suction ductillustrated in FIG. 8 is coupled to the heat dissipation cover.

FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a state in which the lower coverillustrated in FIG. 9 is coupled to a lower door cap.

FIG. 11 is a view illustrating a lower door cap and a cross-section of afirst inserting portion provided at the lower door cap according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

MODES OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments described herein and configurations illustrated in thedrawings are merely preferred examples of the present disclosure, andvarious modified examples that may replace the embodiments and thedrawings of this specification may be present at the time of filing thisapplication.

Like reference numerals or signs presented in each drawing of thisspecification represent parts or elements that perform substantially thesame functions.

Terms used in this specification are used for describing the embodimentsand are not intended to limit and/or restrict the present disclosure. Asingular expression includes a plural expression unless clearlyindicated otherwise. In this specification, terms such as “include,”“have,” or the like designate that features, number, steps, operations,elements, parts, or combinations thereof exist and do not preclude theexistence of or the possibility of adding one or more other features,numbers, steps, operations, elements, parts, or combinations thereof inadvance.

Terms including ordinals such as “first,” “second,” and the like used inthis specification may be used to describe various elements, but theelements are not limited by the terms, and the terms are only used forthe purpose of distinguishing one element from another element. Forexample, a second element may be referred to as a first element whilenot departing from the scope of the present disclosure, and likewise, afirst element may also be referred to as a second element. The term“and/or” includes a combination of a plurality of related describeditems or any one item among the plurality of related described items.

Terms such as “front end,” “rear end,” “upper portion,” “lower portion,”“upper end,” “lower end,” and the like, when used in the descriptionbelow, are defined on the basis of the drawings, and a shape and aposition of each of the elements are not limited by the terms.

Generally, types of refrigerators may be classified depending on formsof a storage compartment and a door.

There are a top mounted freezer (TMF) type refrigerator in which astorage compartment is vertically divided by a horizontal partition, afreezing compartment is formed at an upper side, and a refrigeratingcompartment is formed at a lower side, and a bottom mounted freezer(BMF) type refrigerator in which a refrigerating compartment is formedat an upper side and a freezing compartment is formed at a lower side.

Also, there is a side-by-side (SBS) refrigerator in which a storagecompartment is horizontally divided by a vertical partition, a freezingcompartment is formed at one side, and a refrigerating compartment isformed at the other side, and there is a French door refrigerator (FDR)type refrigerator in which a storage compartment is vertically dividedby a horizontal partition, a refrigerating compartment is formed at anupper side, a freezing compartment is formed at a lower side, and therefrigerating compartment at the upper side is opened or closed by apair of doors.

Although a description of a BMF type refrigerator will be given in thepresent embodiment for convenience of description, embodiments are notlimited thereto.

Hereinafter, embodiments according to the present disclosure will bedescribed in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to anembodiment of the present disclosure, and FIG. 2 is a perspective viewillustrating a state in which a door of the refrigerator according tothe embodiment of the present disclosure is open.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a refrigerator 1 may include a main body 10,a storage compartment 20 formed inside the main body 10 and having anopen front surface, and a door 30 rotatably coupled to the main body 10to open or close open front surfaces of storage compartments 21 and 22.

The main body 10 may form an exterior of the refrigerator 1. The mainbody 10 may include an inner case 11 forming the storage compartment 20and an outer case 12 coupled to an outer side of the inner case 11 toform the exterior. Also, the main body 10 may include a cold air supplydevice (not illustrated) configured to supply cold air to the storagecompartment 20.

The cold air supply device may include a compressor, a condenser, anexpansion valve, an evaporator, a blower fan, a cold air duct, and thelike. A heat insulating material 13 may fill a space between the innercase 11 and the outer case 12 of the main body 10 and an inside of thedoor 30 to prevent leakage of cold air from the storage compartment 20(see FIG. 3).

A machine room (not illustrated) in which a compressor configured tocompress refrigerant and a condenser configured to condense thecompressed refrigerant are installed may be provided at a lower rearside of the main body 10.

An electronic component part 60 in which various electronic componentsfor operating the refrigerator 1 are arranged may be provided at anupper side of the main body 10. The electronic component part 60 may beseparated from the upper storage compartment 21 by a heat insulatingpartition (not illustrated) and prevent heat generated by the variouselectronic components arranged inside the electronic component part 60from penetrating into the upper storage compartment 21.

The storage compartment 20 may be divided into the upper storagecompartment 21 and the lower storage compartment 22 by a horizontalpartition 23. Although the refrigerator 1 according to the embodiment ofthe present disclosure may be a BMF type refrigerator in which the upperstorage compartment 21 is a refrigerating compartment and the lowerstorage compartment 22 is a freezing compartment, embodiments are notlimited thereto, and the refrigerator 1 may also be a TMF typerefrigerator in which the upper storage compartment 21 is a freezingcompartment and the lower storage compartment 22 is a refrigeratingcompartment. However, description will be given on the basis of the BMFtype refrigerator for convenience of description.

Shelves 24 on which food can be placed, an airtight container 25configured to hermetically store food, and a drawer 26 slid to bewithdrawn from the upper storage compartment 21 or inserted into theupper storage compartment 21 may be provided in the upper storagecompartment 21. A drawer 27 slid to be withdrawn from the lower storagecompartment 22 or inserted into the lower storage compartment 22 may beprovided in the lower storage compartment 22.

The storage compartment 20 may have the open front surface so that foodcan be put therein and taken out, and the open front surface may beopened or closed by the door 30.

The upper storage compartment 21 may be opened or closed by an upperdoor 31 rotatably connected to the main body 10. The lower storagecompartment 22 may be opened or closed by a lower door 32 rotatablyconnected to the main body 10.

Door shelves 35 on which food can be stored may be provided at a backsurface of the upper door 31.

The back surface of the upper door 31 may include a first shelfsupporter 35 a vertically extending to support at least one side of bothleft and right sides of the door shelves 35. The first shelf supporter35 a may also be separably provided at the upper door 31 as a separateconfiguration, but is provided to extend from the back surface of theupper door 31 in the present embodiment.

Further, the back surface of the upper door 31 may include a secondshelf supporter 35 b vertically extending at an approximately centralportion. Due to this configuration, the door shelves 35 may be arrangedin parallel at the back surface of the upper door 31 or may be arrangedto be horizontally asymmetrical with respect to the second shelfsupporter 35 b. A camera 40 may be provided in the second shelfsupporter 35 b so that an inside of the upper storage compartment 21 canbe captured.

The upper door 31 may include an upper handle 33 provided at a lower endportion thereof. A user may grip the upper handle 33 and easily open orclose the upper door 31. The upper handle 33 may extend in a horizontaldirection of the upper door 31 and may be formed in a shape recessedtoward an inside of the upper door 31, but the shape of the upper handle33 is not limited thereto, and the upper handle 33 may have any shape aslong as the shape can be easily gripped by the user.

The lower door 32 may include a lower handle 34 provided at an upper endportion. The user may grip the lower handle 34 and easily open or closethe lower door 32. The lower handle 34 may extend in a horizontaldirection of the lower door 32 and may be formed in a shape recessedtoward an inside of the lower door 32, but the shape of the lower handle34 is not limited thereto, and the lower handle 34 may have any shape aslong as the shape can be easily gripped by the user.

Gaskets 36 may be provided at edges of back surfaces of the upper door31 and the lower door 32 to seal gaps between the doors and the mainbody 10 in a state in which the upper door 31 and the lower door 32 areclosed. The gaskets 36 may be installed in the shape of a loop along theedges of the back surfaces of the upper door 31 and the lower door 32,and magnets (not illustrated) may be included therein.

The refrigerator 1 according to the embodiment of the present disclosuremay further include a display unit 50 having an input/output function.The display unit 50 may be installed at the upper door 31 forconvenience of a user. A heat dissipation unit 100 for dissipating heatgenerated in the display unit 50 may be provided behind the display unit50 (see FIG. 3). The heat dissipation unit 100 will be described indetail below.

A speaker assembly (not illustrated) which outputs an operation of therefrigerator 1 due to the display unit 50 by voice may be provided at afront portion of the upper side of the main body 10, and an upperportion of the speaker assembly may be covered by a cover member 71.

A Universal Serial Bus (USB) connection unit 73 connected to the displayunit 50 and to which a USB (not illustrated) capable of outputting animage on the display unit 50 is connected may be provided at an upperend of the upper door 31. Next, the heat dissipation unit will bedescribed in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 to 11.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an upper door of therefrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG.4 is a view illustrating a state in which an upper cover and a dischargeduct are disassembled according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, FIG. 5 is a view illustrating a state in which the dischargeduct illustrated in FIG. 4 is coupled to a heat dissipation cover, FIG.6 is a view illustrating a state in which the upper cover illustrated inFIG. 5 is coupled to an upper door cap, and FIG. 7 is a cross-sectionalview illustrating a portion in which a heat dissipation duct is coupledto a coupling portion according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

As illustrated in FIGS. 3 to 7, the heat dissipation unit 100 fordissipating the heat generated in the display unit 50 is arranged behindthe display unit 50 inside the upper door 31.

The heat dissipation unit 100 includes a heat dissipation cover 110arranged behind the display unit 50 and a heat dissipation duct 120coupled to an upper portion and a lower portion of the heat dissipationcover 110.

The heat dissipation cover 110 is preferably provided to have a sizecorresponding to the display unit 50, and a heat dissipation flow path111 for dissipating the heat generated in the display unit 50 is formedinside the heat dissipation cover 110.

Coupling portions 112 to which the heat dissipation duct 120 is coupledare provided at the upper portion and the lower portion of the heatdissipation cover 110, and the coupling portions 112 include a firstcoupling portion 113 provided at the lower portion of the heatdissipation cover 110 and a second coupling portion 114 provided at theupper portion thereof.

A suction duct 140 of the heat dissipation duct 120 into which outsideair is suctioned is coupled to the first coupling portion 113, and adischarge duct 130 of the heat dissipation duct 120 through which airinside the heat dissipation flow path 111 is discharged to the outsideis coupled to the second coupling portion 114.

A detailed structure of the coupling portion 112 will be described witha description of the heat dissipation duct 120 below.

The heat dissipation duct 120 includes the discharge duct 130 coupled tothe upper portion of the heat dissipation cover 110 and in which adischarge flow path 131 is formed, and the suction duct 140 coupled tothe lower portion of the heat dissipation cover 110 and in which asuction flow path 141 is formed.

Although structures of the discharge duct 130 and the suction duct 140are the same, the discharge duct 130 and the suction duct 140 arenominally distinguished because the discharge duct 130 and the suctionduct 140 either suction or discharge air according to coupling positionsthereof.

Although a plurality of discharge ducts 130 and a plurality of suctionducts 140 are provided and two discharge ducts 130 and two suction ducts140 are illustrated in the drawings, embodiments are not limitedthereto, and a single discharge duct 130 and a single suction duct 140may be provided, or three or more discharge ducts 130 and three or moresuction ducts 140 may be provided.

The heat dissipation duct 120 includes a rear surface portion 121 in aplanar shape and a round portion 123 protruding from a front surface ofthe rear surface portion 121 in a direction toward a front surface ofthe upper door 31.

The round portion 123 is provided at the front surface of the rearsurface portion 121 to have a round cross-section to maximally secure aspace, which can be filled with the heat insulating material 13, betweenthe front surface of the upper door 31 forming an exterior thereof andthe heat dissipation duct 120 when the inside of the upper door 31 isfilled with the heat insulating material 13.

Because the heat insulating material 13 is hardened and contracted afterbeing filled in the space, the above prevents a curve from beinggenerated at the front surface of the upper door 31 forming the exteriordue to the contraction of the heat insulating material 13 when the spacefilled with the heat insulating material 13 is narrow.

Although there is no problem in the case in which a thickness of theupper door 31 is thick because the space filled with the heat insulatingmaterial 13 can be sufficiently secured, because it is difficult tosufficiently secure the space filled with the heat insulating material13 in the case in which the thickness of the upper door 31 is thin, thespace filled with the heat insulating material 13 can be maximallysecured only when the round portion 123 is formed in the heatdissipation duct 120.

A reinforcing rib 125 configured to reinforce strength at a portion witha largest width among the flow paths 131 and 141, which are formedinside the heat dissipation duct 120, may be provided between the rearsurface portion 121 and the round portion 123.

The discharge duct 130 of the heat dissipation duct 120 is inserted intothe upper door 31 through the upper portion of the upper door 31, and iscoupled to the upper portion of the heat dissipation cover 110.

An upper door cap 80 is coupled to the upper portion of the upper door31, and the upper door cap 80 includes a second inserting portion 81into which the discharge duct 130 is inserted.

A number of second inserting portions 81 corresponding to the number ofdischarge ducts 130 are provided, and the second inserting portion 81includes a second insertion hole 83 into which the discharge duct 130 isinserted and a second guide 85 configured to guide the discharge duct130 inserted into the second insertion hole 83 to slide in a verticaldirection.

The second guide 85 may be provided to extend downward from the secondinsertion hole 83.

A fixing hook 87 configured to fix the discharge duct 130 inserted intothe second insertion hole 83 may be provided at one side of the secondinsertion hole 83.

A lower end portion of the discharge duct 130 inserted through thesecond inserting portion 81 is coupled to the second coupling portion114 provided at the upper portion of the heat dissipation cover 110.

The second coupling portion 114 includes an insertion groove 115 intowhich the lower end portion of the discharge duct 130 is inserted, afirst supporter 116 configured to support an outer portion of thedischarge duct 130 inserted into the insertion groove 115, and a secondsupporter 117 configured to support an inner portion of the dischargeduct 130.

The insertion groove 115 is provided to have a shape corresponding tothe rear surface portion 121 and the round portion 123 of the dischargeduct 130.

The second supporter 117 configured to support the inner portion of thedischarge duct 130 may include a coupling groove 118 to which thereinforcing rib 125 of the discharge duct 130 is fitted and coupled.

Because the second inserting portion 81 of the upper door cap 80 and thesecond coupling portion 114 of the heat dissipation cover 110respectively accommodate the upper portion and the lower portion of thedischarge duct 130 to block the upper portion and the lower portion fromthe space filled with the heat insulating material 13, leakage of theheat insulating material 13 to the outside can be prevented without aseparate sealing task.

An upper cover 150 configured to cover the second inserting portion 81to block the second inserting portion 81 from the outside is coupled tothe upper door cap 80, and discharge holes 151 that allow the dischargeflow path 131 of the discharge duct 130 to communicate with an outsideof the upper door 31 are provided in the upper cover 150.

Because the second inserting portion 81 is blocked from the outside bythe upper cover 150, penetration of foreign substances into thedischarge duct 130 inserted into the second inserting portion 81 can beprevented.

FIG. 8 is a view illustrating a state in which a lower cover and asuction duct are disassembled according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, FIG. 9 is a view illustrating a state in which the suctionduct illustrated in FIG. 8 is coupled to the heat dissipation cover,FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a state in which the lower coverillustrated in FIG. 9 is coupled to a lower door cap, and FIG. 11 is aview illustrating a lower door cap and a cross-section of a firstinserting portion provided at the lower door cap according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

As illustrated in FIGS. 8 to 11, the suction duct 140 of the heatdissipation duct 120 is inserted into the upper door 31 through thelower portion of the upper door 31 and coupled to the lower portion ofthe heat dissipation cover 110.

Because the structure of the suction duct 140 is the same as that of thedischarge duct 130, a description thereof will be omitted.

A lower door cap 90 is coupled to the lower portion of the upper door31, and the lower door cap 90 includes a first inserting portion 91 intowhich the suction duct 140 is inserted.

A number of first inserting portions 91 corresponding to the number ofsuction ducts 140 are provided, and the first inserting portion 91includes a first insertion hole 93 into which the suction duct 140 isinserted and a first guide 95 configured to guide the suction duct 140inserted into the first insertion hole 93 to slide in the verticaldirection.

The first guide 95 may be provided to extend upward from the firstinsertion hole 93.

An upper end portion of the suction duct 140 inserted through the firstinserting portion 91 is coupled to the first coupling portion 113provided at the lower portion of the heat dissipation cover 110.

Because a structure of the first coupling portion 113 is the same asthat of the second coupling portion 114, a description thereof will beomitted.

Because the first inserting portion 91 of the lower door cap 90 and thefirst coupling portion 113 of the heat dissipation cover 110respectively accommodate the lower portion and the upper portion of thesuction duct 140 to block the lower portion and the upper portion fromthe space filled with the heat insulating material 13, leakage of theheat insulating material 13 to the outside can be prevented without aseparate sealing task.

The lower door cap 90 includes a recessed portion having anupwardly-recessed shape, and the first inserting portion 91 is providedat the recessed portion.

The recessed portion forms the upper handle 33 of the upper door 31.

A lower cover 160 configured to cover the first inserting portion 91 toblock the first inserting portion 91 from the outside is coupled to thelower door cap 90, a light emitting diode (LED) 161 that is litaccording to an opening and closing of the lower door 32 is mounted inthe lower cover 160, and suction holes 163 that allow the suction flowpath 141 of the suction duct 140 to communicate with the outside of theupper door 31 are provided in the lower cover 160.

Both side portions of the lower cover 160 are provided to have a roundshape so that the recessed portion forming the upper handle 33 of theupper door 31 forms the largest possible space and a user can easilygrip the upper handle 33, and the suction holes 163 may be provided atboth of the side portions of the lower cover 160.

Because the first inserting portion 91 is blocked from the outside bythe lower cover 160, penetration of foreign substances into the suctionduct 140 inserted into the first inserting portion 91 can be prevented.

The lower cover 160 may be formed of a transparent material so thatlight is emitted to an outside of the lower cover 160 when the LED 161mounted in the lower cover 160 is lit according to the opening andclosing of the lower door 32.

Although it is illustrated in the drawings that the lower cover 160 iscoupled and accommodated in the recessed portion forming the upperhandle 33 of the upper door 31 and light emitted by the LED 161 isemitted downward from the upper door 31, embodiments are not limitedthereto, and the light emitted by the LED 161 may also be emittedforward from the upper door 31.

Next, a process in which the heat dissipation duct is coupled to theheat dissipation cover will be described.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, when the discharge duct 130 is insertedthrough the second inserting portion 81 of the upper door cap 80 in astate in which the upper door cap 80 is coupled to the upper portion ofthe upper door 31, the discharge duct 130 slides downward, and the lowerend portion of the discharge duct 130 is coupled to the second couplingportion 114 of the heat dissipation cover 110, as illustrated in FIG. 5.

Because the discharge duct 130 slides downward through the secondinserting portion 81 to be coupled to the heat dissipation cover 110,the discharge duct 130 can be easily coupled to the heat dissipationcover 110.

When the discharge duct 130 is coupled to the second coupling portion114 of the heat dissipation cover 110, the upper cover 150 is coupled tothe upper door cap 80, as illustrated in FIG. 6.

As illustrated in FIG. 8, when the suction duct 140 is inserted throughthe first inserting portion 91 of the lower door cap 90 in a state inwhich the lower door cap 90 is coupled to the lower portion of the upperdoor 31, the suction duct 140 slides upward, and the upper end portionof the suction duct 140 is coupled to the first coupling portion 113 ofthe heat dissipation cover 110, as illustrated in FIG. 9.

Because the suction duct 140 slides upward through the first insertingportion 91 to be coupled to the heat dissipation cover 110, the suctionduct 140 can be easily coupled to the heat dissipation cover 110.

When the suction duct 140 is coupled to the first coupling portion 113of the heat dissipation cover 110, the lower cover 160 is coupled to thelower door cap 90, as illustrated in FIG. 10.

Looking at a process in which the heat generated in the display unit 50is dissipated by the heat dissipation unit 100, because air whosetemperature is increased due to the display unit 50 flows upward in theheat dissipation flow path 111 formed inside the heat dissipation cover110 as illustrated in FIG. 3, a lower portion of the heat dissipationflow path 111 should be supplemented with air.

Consequently, outside air is suctioned through the suction holes 163provided in the lower cover 160, and the air suctioned into the suctionholes 163 is supplied to the lower portion of the heat dissipation flowpath 111 through the suction flow path 141 (see FIG. 9).

The air with an increased temperature that flows upward inside the heatdissipation flow path 111 is discharged to the outside of the heatdissipation flow path 111 through the discharge flow path 131 of thedischarge duct 130, and the air discharged through the discharge flowpath 131 is discharged to the outside of the upper door 31 through thedischarge holes 151 of the upper cover 150 (see FIG. 6).

Because air outside the upper door 31 passes through the suction flowpath 141 and is transmitted to the heat dissipation flow path 111 due tonatural convection of air and the air whose temperature is increased dueto the display unit 50 is discharged to the outside of the upper door 31through the discharge flow path 131 due to the outside air beingtransmitted to the heat dissipation flow path 111, the heat generated inthe display unit 50 may be dissipated to the outside without beingtransmitted to the storage compartment 20.

Although description has been given mainly on the basis of particularshapes and directions in the above description of the refrigerator withreference to the accompanying drawings, various modifications andchanges may be made by one of ordinary skill in the art, and suchmodifications and changes should be construed as belonging to the scopeof the present disclosure.

1. A refrigerator comprising: a main body having a storage compartment;and a door configured to open or close the storage compartment, whereinthe door includes: a display unit provided at a front surface of thedoor; and a heat dissipation unit for dissipating the heat generated inthe display unit, the heat dissipation unit includes: a heat dissipationcover arranged behind the display unit to form a heat dissipation flowpath; and a heat dissipation duct coupled to an upper portion and alower portion of the heat dissipation cover to allow the heatdissipation flow path to communicate with the outside of the door, andincluding a round portion protruding in a direction toward the frontsurface of the door; the heat dissipation duct is arranged so that afront surface and a rear surface thereof are filled with the heatinsulating material.
 2. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the heatdissipation duct includes a plurality of suction ducts coupled to thelower portion of the heat dissipation cover to form a suction flow paththat allows the heat dissipation flow path to communicate with theoutside of the door and a plurality of discharge ducts coupled to theupper portion of the heat dissipation cover to form a discharge flowpath that allows the heat dissipation flow path to communicate with theoutside of the door.
 3. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the heatdissipation cover is arranged between the display unit and a heatinsulating material with which an inside of the door is filled.
 4. Therefrigerator of claim 3, wherein the suction ducts slides into the doorthrough a lower portion of the door and be coupled to the lower portionof the heat dissipation cover, and the discharge ducts slides into thedoor through an upper portion of the door and be coupled to the upperportion of the heat dissipation cover.